l her if she let um go."

"Poor creature!" said Murray, wrinkling up his brow.

"Yes, sah; berry poor creature, sah. Caesar berry sorry. Massa Allen
good massa, and Caesar lub um."

"But where is he now? Not dead?"

"Yes, massa been die berry much all um time. Couldn't quite go die till
poor Caesar come, and den he shake hand. Say `Good-bye, Caesar, lad.
Tell Massa Murray Frank. Tell um t'ink de bes' ob a poor weak man.'"

"Mr Allen said that, Caesar?" said Murray.

"Yes, sah. Caesar cry bofe eyes. Tullus cry and slabe woman cry when
we put um in de groun' fas' asleep. Everybody lub poor Massa Allen,
sah. Gone dead. Say go to sleep happy now. No more slabe trade now.
No more poor niggah leap overboard now Massa Murray Frank and Bri'sh
sailor come."

"Well, Mr Murray," said the captain, about an hour later, "I hope you
are ready to return to your duties."

"Yes, sir, certainly," said the lad, staring.

"I'm glad of it. And, by the way, this is a very favourable opportunity
for saying a few words in season to you. Let me tell you that I am not
at all satisfied with the way in which your duties have been carried
out, any more, I may say, than I have been with the way in which I have
been served by your brother officers. I look for something better in
the future, sir, something decidedly better in the future, I may say;"
and he stalked aft and went below.

"Did you hear what Captain Kingsberry said, sir?" said Murray to the
chief officer, who just then came limping up with his spy-glass beneath
his feeble arm.

"Yes, Murray, every word. My dear boy, it is a way he has. There,
there, my lad, I think amongst us we've given the slave-trade its
heaviest blow."

THE END.

End of Project Gutenberg's Hunting the Skipper, by George Manville Fenn

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